After news broke out that Christian Koloko had agreed to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, the 7-foot center immediately celebrated his NBA comeback with a tweet.
“God’s timing is always the best,” Koloko posted, tweet-quoting The Athletic’s news breaker Shams Charania’s report.
The 24-year-old Koloko was also pursued by the Raptors along with the Los Angeles Clippers and the San Antonio Spurs, according to Charania.
But it was the Lakers he chose because of the chance to carve a big role in their thin frontline.
The Lakers’ center rotation became thinner after Christian Wood underwent another surgery. Wood will miss at least eight weeks, according to Charania.
Koloko will join Jaxson Hayes and Colin Castleton, who is on a two-way contract, as the healthy Lakers backup centers behind Anthony Davis entering the training camp.
According to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times, Koloko was expected to sign a two-way contract, which means the Lakers have to waive a player on such deal.
Aside from Castleton, the Lakers’ other players on a two-way contract are Blake Hinson and Armel Traore.
A two-way player can join their NBA club for a maximum of 50 games in the regular season. But they cannot be rostered in the playoffs unless their contract is converted into a standard deal.
Blood Clot Issue
Koloko missed the entire last season after he was discovered to have career-threatening blood clot issue. The NBA barred him from playing and even practicing with his team.
The NBA’s Fitness-to-Play Panel consists of “one physician appointed by the NBA, one physician appointed by the Players Association and one physician appointed by agreement of the first two physicians,” per the Collective Bargaining Agreement, determine whether players with potentially life-threatening injuries, illnesses or other medical conditions are medically able and fit to practice and play basketball in the NBA.
Koloko’s doctors has cleared him to resume playing, Sportsnet Canada reported in July, and began training for his NBA comeback.
The Toronto Raptors, who selected him 33rd overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, waived him to complete the Pascal Siakam trade in January.
The Lakers beat plenty of teams, who were also interested in signing Koloko after he gets clearance from the NBA Fitness panel to play again.
Christian Koloko Compared to Nets’ Rim-Running Center
During the pre-draft process, Koloko was compared to Brooklyn Nets’ rim-running center Nic Claxton.
“Koloko will have a defined role that calls for rim running, shot-blocking and switching defensively,” Bleacher Report’s draft analyst Jonathan Wasserman wrote in his scouting report of Koloko. “Anything more offensively would be a bonus, though he was one of the nation’s most efficient post scorers and improved at the free-throw line.”
Koloko had a promising rookie season, averaging 3.1 points per game, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks in 13.8 minutes for the Raptors until his serious medical condition sidelined him indefinitely.
Now that he’s back, Koloko hopes to pick up from where he left off and continue to develop as rim protector.
The former All-Pac 12 player could potentially play at times alongside Davis in the Lakers frontcourt this season.
ESPN reported Anthony Davis prefers to play more often with a big man.
“One thing Davis has made clear to the Lakers, sources told ESPN, is his preference to play alongside another big more often,” ESPN’s Dave McMenamin wrote on September 12.
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Lakers’ New Center Posts 6-Word Message After Signing